Snow fence



Aug. 19, 1930. a. 1.. BARRUS snow FENCE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Septfl3, 1927 9, 1930. G. L. BARRUS 1,773,128

SNOW FENCE Filed-s e t. 13, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 GEORGE L. BHRRUS WC? 4am Patented Aug. 19, 1 930 i UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application filed September 13, 1927. Serial No. 219,325.

My invention is of value wherever there is easily injured. Another disadvantage is a tendency for snow to drift, particularly that as ordinarily put up in unit rolls of a highways. With the advent of the automonumber of yards'they are heavy to .handle bile and the greatly increased use of the highand the labor cost of erecting the fence is Ways it has now become customary to keep high. Also these fences wear out in a rela 55 roads open the year round. For this purpose tively short time, say five years as an aversnow-plows and tractors are used to clear the age. snow whenever it is deep enough to interfere There is also onthe market a heavier and with transportation" Annual costs for such better fence built on the same general lines 10 Work mount into large figures. Some effort as the above. The cost of this, however, so is also made to reduce such costs or toeffect makes it practically prohibitive. In addithe same results to some degree by preventation they are heavier to handle and almost tive measures. WVhenever a section of road impossible to set up in aheavy wind. has a tendency to drift the use of a fence on My invention avoids the above disadvanthe side from which the snow usually drifts tages andis little if any moreexpensive, par 65 will greatly reduce such tendency. tioularly if the total life before it wears out Not only do such fences accomplish the is taken into consideration and therefore the more or less obvious result of preventing very low cost per year. It also is very simsome of the snow from reaching the road but pie to erect, it being possible for one man to Q9 it hasbeen found that if placed just about do it alone without assistance. Another adthe right distance from the road, the wind vantage is that it is lighter and very comwhich comes over the top of the fence again pact thus saving storage-space requireddurreaches the ground at the road and sweeps it 7 ing the summer months as compared with clean. A proper spacing back from the road othertypes of fences and what is even more therefore enables the fence to prevent driftvaluable, it saves space in trucking between ing and even to convert the undesirable inthe field and placeof storage. My fence is fiuence of the wind .intoa beneficial one and knocked-down into units of smaller volum utilize it for sweeping the highway clean. and weight, which makes erecting, trucking One rule of thumb used to determine the and storage all'easier, morerapid and less proper distance-the fence should be placed expensive. V, a h from the highway is that the distance should Forv a more detailed descriptionof one embe ten feet for every foot of heightof the bodiment of my invention reference is made fence. -Thus a siX-foot fence should be sixty to the accompanying drawings which form feet back from the highway. a part of this specification and in which,

From the foregoing it will be seen that the Fig. 1 shows two units or supports with Ill? location of the fence if suitable for itsprihe boards in place indicating how the, inmary purpose will frequently bring it into ventlon appears in use. o c the middle of a field under cultivation during F 1g. 2 shows the first step in the manufacthe summer months. Such fences-therefore ture of the hinge or joint at the upper part 9 have generally been of such a nature that Of the support. a

they could be readily taken down in the .Fig. shows one memberor leg of the supspring and stored and again set up inthe p r Wi h; the 31 pr parat ry o being fall, g united with its corresponding member. temporaryfence th k t nd Fig. 4 shows the corresponding member used for the above'purpose is of awire-fence With the lugsbent 1n the'opposite direction. Til type of construction with wooden strips. Fig. 5 shows the two mem s U t d This type has numerous disadvantages. In f I lGOl fortransportatlon or storage; the first place .the fencesare quite frail. Fig. 6 shows the two members united and They areeasily blown down in a heavy wind. spread apart for use.

And also because of their frailty they are The snow fence comprises a number (itit. I

supports 10, 10 suitably spaced apart to correspond with the length of the boards to be used. I have found 14 feet to be a satisfactory length of board in which case the supports would be about 13% feet apart.

Each sup ort consists of two members or legs 12mm? 13 of substantially the same length,"hin-ged together 'attheiop as-indi--' cated at 14. I preferabl use a heav sheetmetal for these members ent into a shape as indicated in the pliaiitom cfoss sections 12'.

The material for these members should;

either be a rust resisting alloy or should be treated by some rust reoictingprocess; This part of my fence is the only part that is not the. essence of icity and ,therefor by this semi in structible the yearly cdstis yery low. remainder of the fencebein merely standard boards arenotonlychiea but'can bereadily obtained locally.

This lower end'oftiiese'members is not cut square or at right-an les but at an angle-so ovide a oint l ,wherebythe support viiie ill-var effectual 'locki arrangement so thb bb ddnotsli onto place readily.

o'fme'mbers equal length brings theid" tr'of ravity approximately-over the mild 6f the" newmmgam lower ends of the members and tends to render the structure stalilii bnt I have fhuxid that in heavy winds a tendenc to :tip the whole"fence over. The drivinigofthe inted lower end 15 intojthe ground cannbthg depended on to' prevent this: Ihave -sliown onesimple methoiloffanchoring against the-wind at 18 where is driven intdtheground for this m y j The' metal themselves are ailsobe providedhith holes 22 through which an anchoring .stake 23 may be driven into-the groundat-anan 1e toth plane of the and more or ess parallel tothe fence. Siich an anchoiin is'resistive to the cit er direction. At 5 offthewhole fence additional anchiiragfiis usaefly reqairea. The detailed .methndefaaehmng'maybs varied but that QQM QEQS negate-adenine advantage of a y ing the support from settling and a Teadfiymwsofiermrsh ground ing s.

shbwli at17. When theboards rest :wedgeshaped'bpenings there'is pro which I have found the sharp points have a tendency to do. I have also found that the angular disposition of the fence from the vertical is very effective in directing the wind in a manner which could not be attained in a fence that was vertical.

To describe the hinge in detail reference is made to Figs. 2 to 6. A central opening is punched out with a plurality of inwardly projecting .ears, four as shown in the draw- The ears" 19, 19"of member 12 (see Fig-.3) are then bent at right angles toward the right. In Fig. 4 the corresponding member' 13 'is'shown-with its cars 20, 20 bent at right angles toward the left. Members 12 and '13 are then placedtogether so a that the cars 19; 19 pass' through' the-opening of member 13 and likewise ears 20, 20' pass through the opening of member 12. In"

this position" with members 12 and 13 flat against 'each other the ears are bentaround the rest'ofafull 180 degrees. Fig. 5 shows this completed' hinge with the support folded up for transportation; Fig. 6 shows the hinge or joint'openedup for use. It will be noticed thatthe ears are sodesigned that they-provide a stop by coming-together when the hinge has been spread to themaxi'mum angle: for which it was designed. Also the portion'shoulder 21 is cut out at such an angle as to provide a stop. This can best beseelr i rFig: 6i Either the ears orthe shoulder 21or both toge'ther may be used 'for this stop or limit purpose.

In'transporting the boardsorsupports from'the place-of storage to thefi'eld; the supports arefolded as shownin Fig. 55' Toset themnpone 'of the supports is spread and driven'intothe ground as shown in Fig. 1;

When the second onehas been set up the- 1". Asnow-fence supportadapted' for seasonal removal and reassembly comprising a pairof-members adapted to be folded for transportation and storage, said members be ing hinged'together at their upper ends and each of said members being provided with aplurality of recessesfor receiving fence boards. I

2. snow-fence-supportadaptedfor seasona'l removal andj'reassembly comprising a pair of Z-sh'aped members of sheet metal adapted to be folded for transportation and storage, said members being hinged together at their upper ends and provided with a stop.

for limiting their angular spread, said support being provided with a plurality of rectangular openings for receiving fence boards.

3. A snow-fence support adapted for seasonal removal and reassembly comprising a pair of members adapted to be folded for transportation and storage, each of said mem bers comprising a sheet metal Web and integral reinforcingflanges, said members being hinged together at their upper ends and pointed at their lower ends, said supports having a plurality of rectangular openings for fence boards, said openingsbeing Wedge shaped at their lower portion to hold the fence boards firmly in place.

4. A snow fence support adapted for sea sonal removal and reassembly comprising a pair of members of substantially the same length adapted to be folded for transporta tion and storage by being hinged together at their upper ends, each of said members comprising a sheet metal Web with reinforcing flanges extending therefrom in such a man nor as to permit the members to be folded readily at the hinge, said support having a plurality of openings forfence boards, the equal length of the members bringing the center of gravity of the fence approximately above the mid-point of a line connectingthe lower ends of the members.

5. A snow-fence support adapted for seasonal removal and reassembly comprising a pair of members adapted to be folded for transportation and storage, said support being provided with a plurality of openings for fence boards and said members being hinged at their upper ends, said hinge being provided with a stop to limit the angular I folded for transportation and storage, said I of the opposed member and having their ends 7 bent around the edge of said opposed member. I

spread between the members.

6. A snow-fence support adapted for sea sonal removal and reassembly comprising a pair of Z-shaped members of sheet metal adapted to be folded for transportation and storage, said support being provided with a plurality of openings for fence boards, the

upper ends of said members being pivotally held together by hinge means formed integral with said sheet metal and having integral stop means for limiting the angular spread between said members.

7. A snow-fence support adapted for seasonal removal and reassembly comprising a pair of members hinged together at their upper ends whereby they may be readily hinge comprising a plurality of inwardly extending ears circumferentially spaced around a circular opening in each member and extending through the corresponding opening 8. The method of hingedly connecting together the ends of a pair of sheet metal members of a snow-fence support adapted tobe folded for transportation and storage comprising punching out in each of said members a circular opening with a plurality of inwardly extending ears having spaces separating said ears somewhat Wider than said ears, superimposing said pair of members with the circular openings in register with each other and the ears of one member opposite the respective spaces of the other member, bending the ears through said opposed spaces, and finally bending said ears against the far side of the opposing member.

9. A snow-fence adapted for seasonal removal and reassembly comprising a plurality of supports each having'aplurality of rectangular openings for the reception of fence boards, fence boards extending between each pair of supports, each support comprising a pair of sheet metal members pointed at their lower ends and hingedly connected together at their upper ends whereby the support may be disposed in a triangular bracing position at right angles to the direction of the fence,

one of said members having an opening at openings being wedge-shaped at their lower g portion to hold the fence boards firmly in place, the upper ends of said members being fastened together by means of a combined hinge and stop formed integral with said members, said hinge comprising a plurality of inwardly extending ears circumferentially disposed about a circular opening in each member, said ears extending through the circular opening of the other member of the pair and the ends of said ears being bent against the opposite face of the other member.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

GEORGE L. BARRUS. 

